“They’re both incredible”
Cancer-stricken daughter of ex-HSV professional wins riding tournament
Updated on January 7, 2026 – 11:27 amReading time: 2 minutes
Delani Diekmeier is fighting stubborn cancer. But the teenager doesn’t let herself get down and is now celebrating a sporting success.
Despite her serious cancer, Delani Diekmeier achieved an impressive victory at a riding tournament in Eppelheim near Heidelberg. The 15-year-old daughter of the former HSV and Sandhausen professional Dennis Diekmeier won a class L style jumping test on her horse Col d’Amour. The champion of the Badische Pfalz riding ring was the only rider to receive a score of 8.0.
“The two of them are simply incredible,” wrote her mother Dana Diekmeier on Instagram about her daughter and horse. The competition became a family outing, with Delani’s younger siblings Dalina and Divia also taking part in equestrian competitions, as videos on Instagram show.
For the young people, equestrian sport is an important balance to their difficult cancer treatments. “We notice this every day with Delani. Just when she is with her horse: you can’t imagine how much energy that gives her,” explained Dennis Diekmeier in an interview with the German Press Agency a few weeks ago.
The 36-year-old reported: “If you completely lock yourself up and stop talking, then you will break down. You just need these positive moments, so that your body has feelings of happiness.” Delani sometimes got up and often vomited in the morning. But then she went to her horse, “had energy, pure joy and was happy there,” said the ex-footballer.
Delani was diagnosed with a tumor on her adrenal gland. After the surgical removal, doctors discovered metastases in both lungs. At times, the oldest of the four Diekmeier children was considered a palliative patient, but the parents found new doctors.
Before Christmas, Delani began using the novel Imaza therapy from nuclear medicine at the Würzburg University Hospital – with initial success. The new therapeutic approach involves injecting a radioactive agent that is absorbed by the tumor cells. During a break in treatment shortly before the turn of the year, the family spent time in Kitzbühel. Therapy will continue soon.